National Tax and Customs Administration

Export and exit of humanitarian aid deliveries to Ukraine

Content of humanitarian aid deliveries, authorisation

The delivery of assistance shall be limited to health, social, hygiene, housing, clothing and other humanitarian assistance. Consignments may contain goods available in Hungary in the course of trade without authorisation, which by their very nature are suitable for assisting and supporting persons in difficulty as a result of the events taking place in Ukraine. Examples include canned goods, dressings, bed blankets, warm clothing or food. Aid can also be shipped for rescue or damage clearance purposes, even without authorisation from another country, such as fire trucks or ambulances, leaving the customs territory of the European Union for Ukraine. The purpose of transport shall not be commercial sale. Petfood and animal feed, including pet food and feed for pets, sheltered animals, circus or zoo animals, which may be sent as aid consignments for humanitarian purposes without an animal or plant health export certificate.

Products subject to authorisation or prohibited

It is not possible to export military equipment capable of delivering lethal force (in particular rifles, carbines, pistols, ammunition, explosives) or firearms and ammunition for civilian use, as well as equipment dangerous to public security (such as knives, swords, bows, etc.) as aid consignments.

Military goods are goods and technology which can be used essentially for military, police, law enforcement and national security purposes. Under Hungarian legislation, firearms are firearms and air weapons from which solid projectiles with a muzzle energy of more than 7.5 joules can be fired.

Military equipment not capable of delivering lethal force (e.g. bullet-proof vests, helmets), dual-use items (e.g. camera-mounted drones), equipment posing a threat to public security (e.g. gas sprays, arrows), explosives for civil use (e.g. detonators, propellant powder), their parts and accessories may be exported to Ukraine as relief items by submitting an official authorisation or, in return for the electronic means in principle, a written customs declaration as a minimum. In the case of such products, the customs department of the National Tax and Customs Administration carries out goods inspections and checks on the existence and data content of the authorisations. Therefore, due to the investigations, it is expected that there will be a longer waiting time compared to the goods for humanitarian use mentioned above.

More detailed information on authorisation can be found here:

https://mkeh.gov.hu/haditechnika/haditechnikai-tevékenység

https://mkeh.gov.hu/haditechnika/kettos_felhasznalasu

It is recommended that the following departments of the Budapest-Capital Government Office (BFKH) Department of Commerce, Military Equipment, Export Control and Precious Metal Validation be contacted prior to deliveries for economic operators and organisations dispatching aid consignments, in order to determine any licence requirements.

For dual-use items

Export Control Department

• telephone: + 36 1 458 5599, + 36 1 458 5879, + 36 1 458 5807
• e-mail: exportcontrol@bfkh.gov.hu

Explosives for civil use and devices dangerous for public security

Trade Department

• telephone: + 36 1 458 5616, + 36 1 458 5564, + 36 1 458 5558
• e-mail: keo@bfkh.gov.hu

For military or military products

Military Engineering Department

• telephone: + 36 1 458 5588, + 36 1 458 5569, + 36 1 458 5518
• e-mail: armstrade@bfkh.gov.hu

Petroleum products in bulk for aid delivery to Ukraine:

• customs duties,
• transported under excise arrangements, with an authorisation for excise purposes and an accompanying document

it can be exported.

The export of prescription and non-prescription medicines as aid consignments is only possible on the basis of a notification to the National Public Health and Pharmaceutical Centre (hereinafter: NNGYK).

For medicinal products of non-domestic origin transported in transit through the territory of Hungary to Ukraine as aid consignments, the prescriptions of the pharmaceutical authority of the country of departure apply. They do not need to be notified to the NNGYK, so they do not need to be certified or licensed by the NNGYK. If the aid consignments are destined for Hungary (and will be delivered to Ukraine at a later stage), they must be declared to the NNGYK, as indicated above.

In order to determine whether licences or certificates should be submitted, it is recommended that operators and organisations dispatching aid supplies contact the NNGYK prior to delivery, using the following contact details:

• by phone: under number + 36 1 886 9300, general information (1812),
• by e-mail: info@egészségvonal.gov.hu

The delivery of veterinary medicinal products is not subject to authorisation and, consequently, is not part of aid deliveries.

General rules on customs controls

Customs checks on humanitarian aid consignments are carried out as a matter of priority by the customs services of the National Tax and Customs Administration. We kindly ask you to initiate the process of placing the aid consignments under the customs procedure with due diligence, preferably in prior consultation with the above authorities or with the NAV Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County Tax and Customs Directorate, which operates the border inspection posts of the Ukrainian-Hungarian border section.

The contact details of the Directorate’s border posts (Beregsurány, Tiszabecs, Záhony) can be found at:

https://nav.gov.hu/igazgatóságok/igazgatóságok/Szabolcs_Szatmar_Bereg_megye

Please note that any export or exit of a product for which a licence or certificate is required must be accompanied by the necessary licences and certificates. If companies are in possession of a written position or information – received by letter or e-mail – on the exemption issued by the competent authorities (e.g. BFKH), it must be submitted during the customs procedure. This will significantly facilitate and speed up the process of customs procedures and controls.

Notification at the customs office of exit related to export, exit, verbally or by conduct

The delivery of assistance may be carried out by natural persons, state or municipal organisations, civil society organisations carrying out charitable, social or humanitarian tasks. The intention to export must be declared regardless of the value and weight limits, which may be expressed orally or by implication. Verbal reporting is where, at the border crossing point, the transporter verbally declares the consignment to the customs guard before exit, whereas simple transit at the border of the customs territory of the Union is deemed to constitute a customs declaration by implication.

Private donations intended solely for export by natural persons may be declared for the customs export procedure by the above informal means, regardless of the threshold, if all the circumstances of the case, in particular the nature and quantity of the goods, do not indicate any commercial intent. Otherwise, the customs authorities shall require a written customs declaration where the threshold of EUR 1000 or the net weight of 1 000 kg is exceeded, in principle by electronic means.

Companies and foundations may also initiate the export of aid consignments not exceeding the threshold of EUR 1000 and at the same time a net weight of 1 000 kg, both orally and by means of a customs declaration. However, for tax purposes (e.g. VAT declaration, deduction), it may be necessary to prove that the goods in the aid consignment have been exported. It is therefore appropriate to make a written customs declaration at the time of export. This is not necessary if the aid delivery is made up of private donations from the company’s employees.

Exports of prohibited or restricted goods, regardless of the threshold, must always be initiated by means of a written customs declaration.A written customs declaration shall also be required where the export of aid in excess of a threshold of EUR 1000 or a net weight of 1 000 kg is initiated by a legal person. In both cases, as a general rule, the export must be initiated electronically.

The threshold of EUR 1000 corresponds to HUF 389000 in 2026.

In the case of aid consignments to Ukraine from a non-EU country (e.g. UK, Switzerland) which were placed under the temporary admission customs procedure orally or with conduct suggestive of entering the customs territory of the Union, the re-export declaration to Ukraine may also be presented orally or with conduct suggestive of re-exportation. In the case of a customs procedure initiated at the customs office of entry by means of a written customs declaration, exit takes place at the customs office of exit in the normal way by means of a certificate in the customs declaration.

Aid can be released at the Ukrainian-Hungarian border as follows:

* passenger traffic should be understood as pedestrian and passenger car traffic.

Pre-notification for faster exit

The smooth exit of aid consignments is facilitated by prior notification of the expected time of arrival of the consignments, the type, quantity of the cargo and the planned border crossing point at the exit. Notifications and questions are received by a staff member of the National Tax and Customs Administration.

Please note that Barabás-Koszino, Lónya-Dzvinkove, Nagyhódos-Nagypalád are border crossing points with limited opening hours, for which it is advisable to arrive at the border crossing point at least 1-1.5 hours before the closing time of the crossing point in order to transit quickly and safely.

Information and pre-notification of aid deliveries:

• By phone: on working days between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. on + 36 30 287 9203.
• By e-mail from 0 to 24 hours: humanitárius@nav.gov.hu

Registration of tolls

Humanitarian aid consignments registered in the exemption register do not have to declare and pay a road fee.

The exemption entry should be requested at the email address okf.fougyelt@katved.gov.hu, which is operational 24 hours.

The notification shall contain the following information:

• truck registration number and type;
• truck mass;
• driver’s name and mobile number;
• where it is delivered from;
• planned entry and exit point;
• intended date of entry and exit;
• itinerary of the journey (list of main road sections);
• nature and description of the consignment.

Humanitarian aid is also exempt from trucking stops if they can present an exemption declaration as a travel document. The declaration to be filled in is 190/2008. (VII. 29) can be found in Annex 4 of the Government Decree.

Entry of relief items into Ukraine

According to the information currently in force by the Ukrainian authorities, two documents must accompany the transport of aid, both in passenger and freight traffic:

• a letter of donation,
• the itemised list or list of goods sent, without any formal requirement, in a legible and transparent format.

To facilitate the entry of offered aid items and speed up customs clearance, the Ukrainian government has set up the online platform https://customs.help.gov.ua/en/ where declarations can be submitted electronically.

According to the information provided by the Government of Ukraine, the AHARS (Automated Humanitarian Aid Registration System) system, which generates a unique electronic code, is required for the entry of aid consignments. Detailed information on the system is available on this website:

Digital mechanism for importing humanitarian aid to Ukraine to be launched on December 1 | Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine (kmu.gov.ua)

The notice issued on 7 May 2025 on this subject is replaced by the present notice.

Budapest, 18 August 2026

National Tax and Customs Administration